Thursday, September 29, 2011

Alara Unbroken - Section 17

Aarsil laughs at the absurdity of Mubin's request, but he's quite serious.

"Highness, I believe that the Order of the Skyward Eye has been propagating a campaign of deception across Bant for years. They've been manipulating our traditions, introducing falsehoods into our histories, and backing up their claims with forged documents and relics."

When comparing his rubbing to the book of prayers he's been studying, he noticed some subtle changes between the two. That book of prayers lends greater emphasis for war during this moment of crisis and plays down the legendary sword of Asha. He believes they were altered to hid the truth. The shattered sword is more than just a metaphor and a piece is buried beneath each of the Twelve Trees.

Aarsil's adviser, Wanath, scoffs at the idea and Aarsil orders Mubin out of her sight.

Naya

At the outskirts of Qasal, by the Tower of Qasal, Zaliki calls out Marisi from wherever he is within the ranks of his awaiting army of Wild Nacatl. She demands that the personal matter of Jazal be settled with her. The army parts and Mirsi steps forward. Marisi thanks her for playing her role and she tells him she should never have trusted him and obeyed his orders to plant that artifact in the fire. That she was a fool to believe in his ideals of freedom. All of it is just a cover to tear their people apart like Jazal said. Marisi tells her he admires her attempts to right any wrongs, but none of this is under any of their control. They are just pieces of someone else's game. Freedom is only for the strong and powerful. He signals the attack.

(More on this later.)

Grixis

Kaeda has been flying for days, sent ahead to give the warning to Bant. They have to know Malfegor is coming. Already at the edge of his endurance, Kaeda he realizes too late the glow ahead isn't from the skies of Bant, but a strange ball of energy instead. It has a strange pull on him that he barely breaks free of, but then a strange pulse of energy strikes one of his wings and down he goes.

Naya

Marisi strikes and Zaliki is quick to summon timber wolves and walls of vines to her defense. When Marsi gets a good hold onto her, she casts a spell and grows to a the size of a giant and his hold breaks. She crushes combatants underfoot in her attempts to keep up with the fleeing Marisi. There's just so much mana in the air for Zaliki to make use of, more than she's ever felt before, and she easily summons a charging gargantuan which knocks the legendary warrior off his feet.

Zaliki picks him up in her hands and calls out to everyone to stop. Marisi is a fraud and a liar. She doesn't hear the protests and calls of traitor being flung at her, and she doesn't hear the Ambassador Bant yell out for her to stop using mana. All she feels is the newfound power at her fingertips and the thought that a display of Marisi's mortality will stop the war. She crushes Marisi in her hands. The Tower of Qasal crumbles and falls.

Naya

Nicol Bolas sits atop a Nayan mountain displeased at Marisi's late arrival. He closes his eyes and searches for sources of mana... and there it is. The obelisk has been activated. Marisi may be dead or may be on the run, but his mission is complete.

The Maelstrom

Kaeda's first thought when he wakes is the success of his mission. He hopes he's not too late.

Not since he was a fledgling had he fallen so badly. Thanks to his light bones, he hadn't crushed himself in the impact, but everything was thoroughly bruised, and his left talon was twisted. His tentative attempt to move his wing was punished by pain. The wing was ruined; there was nothing coming out of that shoulder but a blackened branch of bone. There would be no flying out of there.

(More on this later.)

His legs still work even if his wings don't, so he begins to walk.

Bant

Aarsil the Blessed isn't pleased to have Mubin's driver come running to her with news that Mubin is at the Trees. She runs and is shocked at what she finds. He's set up a system of ropes and harnesses and finds him digging in a hole with a shovel where one of the sacred trees used to be. Mubin pulls out a fragment of the sword when she calls out to him.

Kresh is weary. They haven't eaten in days. Ajani's determination is admirable, and he believes they're close to Nicol Bolas' lair, but dying from starvation is not the honorable death in battle that they seek.

"Shh," said Ajani.

"You don't shush me!"

"Quiet!" hissed Ajani. "Do you hear something? Do you hear wings?"

One of the other warriors whispers he hears it too. Dragon wings.

* * *

Seriously?

Zaliki just stands out there and files a personal grievance against Marisi right when the war between the Cloud and Wild Nacatl is going to begin? Why would they stop a war for that? This Naya, not the naive Bant. All Marisi had to do was just signal the attack and ignore the little girl who's feelings are hurt because she was tricked. It's not like Marisi was going to clear his name or anything.

Grixis? Maelstrom?

Kaeda is flying through Grixis to get to Bant and he runs into the Maelstrom? Shouldn't he be flying through Esper to get to Bant? Or Are these planes flat? Are they literally overlapping each other in the shape of a pentagon of circles? When why did Malfegor have to travel through Esper? Couldn't he have just gone that way too? The way that Nicol Bolas was talking, it sounded like Esper was just a necessary road to take to get to Bant for Malfegor to activate the obelisk. No I'm not so sure.

Off-Screen Shenanigans

First of all, maybe Mubin could gain access to the sacred trees because the natives of Bant are too trusting. But he was able to both set up a series of ropes and harnesses while paralyzed (which is impressive considering the well-written section about how difficult life is for him in his condition) and dig up an ancient tree all before anyone finally ran to Aarsil the Blessed to tell her what was going on? That seems rather far fetched.

And not only that... is that really all that Wanath is going to do? Just fetch some supplies for Mubin? I was expecting a great conspiracy where he was actively involved with Nicol Bolas... but I guess that isn't the case.

1 comment:

Too bad the death of Kaede, to a minor character he fared much better than many players. Deserved at least one card of his own legend.

Cool. Kaede I had given up for dead is still alive. Let's see what happens. Like you I thought the same about Maris, after all he would do something against the plans of balls instead did just that nonsense to provoke war.

Another character that I'm really enjoying it and not expect that just by looking at its card is Kresh, how can it not white mana? His qualities of red are the best possible, the two (Ajani) form a beautiful dubs.

Now Kaede died unfortunately, but I bought his goal which was very little he died without saying anything, the message is very short and concealed important details, he should have got at least say more things including the Maelstrom.